About Lastovo

Protection of the sky. After years in which it seemed that one exclusivity of Lastovo - its starry sky, with its minimal light pollution, would be lost forever, finally good news! The old public lights have been replaced with new ones which significantly reduce light pollution. The old ones have been removed and 235 new lights have been put up throughout the whole island.

From the May/June 2011 issue of National Geographic Traveler. Author: Paul Kvinta

I've been warned that, like almost everyone living in Croatia’s Dalmatian Islands, Jure Kvinta suffers from "pomalo", a condition said to be so insidious, so overwhelming, so unstoppable, that it could undermine my entire mission. That would be tragic. I’ve come all the way to Croatia to find Jure, to conduct business of the utmost importance with him. Jure is the lighthouse keeper on Lastovo Island, one of the most far-flung and isolated in the Adriatic. By all accounts, Lastovo is an enchanting little outpost, a place of limestone peaks and hidden inlets with just 600 people living in a medieval village surrounded by vineyards and olive groves.

The lighthouse itself is like something out of a fairy tale, I’m told, a majestic beacon perched on a 229-foot cliff overlooking the shimmering Adriatic. Jure’s father kept the lighthouse, as did his father before him. Admittedly, I’ve become fairly obsessed with the structure ever since seeing a photo of it online. There are 48 Croatian lights scattered across the Adriatic, all built in the 19th century, each stunning and inspiring in its own way. But only the one on Lastovo has a connection to my decidedly obscure, Slavic last name—Kvinta. Given that there aren’t that many Kvintas on the planet, my mission is simple: travel to Lastovo, meet Jure, determine if we’re kin, and claim possible bragging rights to having a fabulous European lighthouse in my family.

Lastovois a smallisland-9.8 kmlongandonly5.8 kmwide,with numerousbaysand fieldssittingamongst gentlehills. Everyone who appreciates untouched nature, and who wants to spend an active holiday will enjoy the cycling trails and hiking field paths, most of which are marked and criss-cross the entire surface of the island. Wherever you go, at the end of each trail or path you will be left breathless by the beautiful views. Along the way you will inevitably pass some of the 40 or so mediaeval churches.

The best times for such ventures are in spring and early autumn, when it is not so hot and the breeze will cool you.